This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1872 edition. Excerpt: ...rights which its new form confers upon it, irrespective of the process by which it may have attained this form. But it is not worth while to vindicate from a bad objection that which will not commend itself a whit the more, even after this objection is set aside. Ver. 14. " But Ihave a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balae to cast a stumbling-block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication."--Those " that hold the doctrine of Balaam " are, I am persuaded, identical with the Nicolaitans of ver. 6, 15; indeed the latter verse seems to leave no doubt on the matter. The mention of him as the tempter and seducer would of itself sufficiently explain what was the nature of the sins to which he tempted and seduced (Num. xxv. 1-9; xxxi. 15,16); but the sins are here expressly named. First, however, something may be said on the words o? iSihacnce ra BaXdK, which we, and I believe rightly, have rendered, " who taught Balac." Hengstenberg indeed, and Bengel before him, on the strength of this dative, a dativus commodi as they regard it, united with the fact that SiBuaicciv habitually governs an accusative of the person who is the object of the teaching (thus ver. 20 in this very chapter), have urged that we ought to translate " who taught for Balac" that is, in the interests of Balac, to please him; and, in confirmation of this, they press that there is no hint in Scripture of Balaam having suggested to Balac to put these temptations in the way of the children of Israel; the parting of the two is recorded Num. xxiv. 25, nor is there any reason, they say, to suppose that they ever met again; it was to the Moabitish women themselves, to...